To you, Yahweh, I lift up my soul. My God, I have trusted in you. Don’t let me be shamed. Don’t let my enemies triumph over me.
Psalm 25:1 & 2
Cain rejected God, but Abel loved and worshipped God.
But there was a third son that believers often overlook. We miss so much from God’s story when we relegate certain characters to obscurity.
Adam’s third son, Seth, was born to serve God during humanity’s darkest time, leaving a lineage of faithful servants.
Before exploring Seth’s story, let’s briefly look at each of Adam’s sons to avoid leaving the connection that ties this beautiful story together undone.
The Gospel is reflected in their lives through the relevancy of the Old Testament.
Every person is born with a sinful nature. But everyone who has even childlike intellect can know right from wrong. That knowledge included these early believers.
Yes, even Cain believed in God. He just rejected faith.
Each of Adam’s sons made a simple choice that began from their knowledge of God working in their hearts. The Holy Spirit had not yet come to indwell mankind’s hearts permanently, but God still helped people know Him.
Faith has always been the requirement for salvation. God has always provided grace for every believing heart.
The least reliable way to know God has been our conscience. Why? Because our conscience is driven by our wicked nature. Our desires can override righteousness when we walk in the flesh. (Romans 8) That is what happened to Cain.
Cain knew what was honorable in God’s sight. He chose dishonor.
In faith and obedience to God, Abel prepared His best sacrifice for God.
Abel knew he needed mercy. He honored God by offering a blood sacrifice. He humbled himself and had a righteous and faithful heart before his Creator. (James 4:10)
The reason a blood sacrifice was required was to show the serious consequences of sin, which leads to death.
Though these early Bible characters didn’t know about the cross, God had always known. He knew what mankind’s selfishness and sin would cost His Son.
God knows what sin costs humanity when they reject Him.
Cain’s sacrifice wasn’t a sacrifice. It was disdainful to God. It was offered without faith.
Hebrews 11:6 tells us that “without faith it is impossible to please God.”
Cain gave from the crops he had grown, not a blood sacrifice. Genesis 4:3
God reminded Cain that he knew better. God told him that his own offering would be acceptable if given from a faithful and obedient heart.
But instead of listening to God, Cain increased his sin. He became jealous, bitter, angry, vengeful, and murderous. Then he received the death penalty for rejecting God.
Of course he didn’t die right away. He lived a tortuous life of separation from God and his family. He feared for his life because by this time the world had begun to spiral into godlessness.
Read the conversation between God and Cain. Genesis 4:11-16
The mark placed on Cain was a warning to the world. God did that in order to suppress murder, not because He was blessing Cain.
Cain thought his punishment was more than he could bear. But even when God punishes sin, He is not capricious or arbitrary.
Mankind has a choice.
Read Psalm 51. This passage perfectly defines the sinful heart towards God. But it also tells what kind of heart God accepts.
Genesis 6:7 tells us that none of Cain’s children survived the flood.
Cain’s son, Lamech, for instance, had the first recorded polygamous marriage (Genesis 4:23), completely rejecting God’s design for marriage. (Genesis 2:24)
Lamach was a murderer and had a heart of retribution.
“…the one who kills me will be punished seventy-seven times!” Genesis 4:24 (NLT)
Lamach was quantifying arrogant vengeance.
But look at Jesus –
Jesus wants us to forgive without counting. (Matthew 18:21-22)
And with that we finally get to meet Adam’s third son, Seth, who was faithful.
Adam knew his wife again. She gave birth to a son, and named him Seth, saying, “for God has given me another child instead of Abel, for Cain killed him.”
Genesis 4:25
Seth became a good man who wholly followed God. He is credited with bringing back the worship of God.
A son was also born to Seth, and he named him Enosh. At that time men began to call on Yahweh’s name.
Genesis 4:26
Seth’s lineage was known for faithfulness in a dark world.
Enosh the son of Seth, is noted for the time when “people began to call on the name of the LORD” Genesis 4:26
Pay attention to the last name on the list below.
Kenan, Mahalalel and Jared (father of Enoch). Little is known about them, but their inclusion in this passage tells us they were faithful to God.
Enoch
Enoch, the son of Jared, was so devoted to God that he, along with one other Old Testament saint, didn’t die; God took him to Heaven. Genesis 5:24. Do you remember who the other person was?
2 Kings 2:11
Methuselah was the son of Enoch, and is known for living 969 years, the longest recorded life in the Bible.
Lamech (not that murdering, polygamist, bad guy they we talked a few paragraphs back).
This one is the son of Methuselah, and the father of Noah. In Genesis 5:29,
Noah “a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God” (Genesis 6:9). Noah was faithful and built the Ark.
Of course there are more names after Noah, like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David….and the very best name. The name all believers love to say…
Jesus.
“… the name above all other names…”
Philippians 2:9
Share the Good News in your world!
Isaiah 52:7
World English Bible (WEB)
by Public Domain. The name “World English Bible” is trademarked.
Getting the Seed out of the basket and into hungry hearts. Matthew 13 